Feel the Beat and Just Let Go
by slackerD
Summary: Olivia will always be grateful for Lemonade Mouth, for what they're able to accomplish and for who it brings into her life. Companion piece to The Chips Will Fall Where They May. Olivia/Stella


**Title**: Feel the Beat and Just Let Go

**Author**: slacker_d

**Pairing/Characters**: Olivia/Stella, Wen

**Rating**: PG

**Summary**: Olivia will always be grateful for Lemonade Mouth, for what they're able to accomplish and for who it brings into her life.

**Disclaimer**: Not mine.

**Word Count**: 2,854

**Spoilers**: Entire movie.

**A/N**: For IDF 2012. Companion piece to The Chips Will Fall Where They May.

* * *

Olivia will always be grateful for Lemonade Mouth, for her band mates and friends. So used to being ignored, Olivia almost doesn't know how to respond to the praise of her voice or her impromptu song. So she does what she always does, she tries to brush it off.

As she walks home from detention, she think it's over and that it was a nice moment.

But the next day, Stella texts and she can't not go.

Though part of her is afraid and wants to hide, the part of her that belted out that song, knows she has to go.

And truthfully she finds herself drawn to Stella. She's drawn to them all really, but there's just something about the new girl's energy and drive that seems to fuel them all. Plus, she happens to agree with Stella. She doesn't want to be just one more face, loss in the masses of high school. She's already done that and she's sick of it.

And yeah, maybe she kinda likes Wen, but it's more than just that.

So, she writes a song. She puts everything she's feeling it and hopes the others like it.

Except the first rehearsal is a bit of a disaster. It's the music that saves them. It's what brought them together in the first place and it's what keeps them going.

But then Mudslide Crush starts going after them and they have another reason to unite. When Ray, Jules and Patty corner her at lunch, Olivia does her best to get away, but three against one is hardly fair. When the others show up, she lets out a sigh of relief. Of course it's short lived as Ray pushes past Mo and confronts Wen, who backs down. Olivia's embarrassed to admit that she's surprised when Charlie steps up. Granted, it doesn't last long with Ray's intensity and in your face attitude, but Olivia likes to think it was all part of a plan. Because it gave Stella enough time to make an appearance and do what she does. Save them all by causing more chaos. And even though it results in more detention, it does give them their band name, so it's still a win in Olivia's book.

As they all shuffle into detention, Olivia hangs back and grabs Stella.

"You okay?" Stella asks.

"I just wanted to say thanks," Olivia replies.

"For what?"

"For sticking up for me today," Olivia explains. "No one's ever done that."

"It wasn't a big deal," Stella says. "And Mo, Wen and Charlie were really the ones who-"

Olivia places her hand over Stella's mouth; she figures it's the easiest way to interrupt her. "It was a big deal. Okay?"

With Olivia's hand still on her mouth, Stella can only nod, though Olivia feels Stella smile against her hand.

"Okay then," Olivia says, removing her hand and feeling slightly silly.

Stella just grins wider, grabs Olivia's hand and tugs her inside the detention room.

A few days later, Olivia is surprised to find Wen on her doorstep and hesitantly asks him in. It's a bit awkward at first, but they work well together. Wen seems to enjoy writing songs as much as she does and he's quite the impressive rapper. As they work out their song for the Halloween Bash, Olivia thinks maybe they can do this.

Until the night of the Halloween Bash. Every second the clock ticks closer to show time, Olivia feels worse. As the nausea builds, she has to concede that maybe this was a bad idea and runs to the nearest bathroom.

There's only one stall open and she quickly ducks inside. She tries to calm down and just breathe as she leans against the stall wall.

She's so focused on her breathing that she almost misses the entrance of her band mates. She half-heartedly hears them talking and then there's Wen quiet inquiry.

"Great. Super," she barely manages.

"That's my girl," Stella exclaims.

Olivia allows herself a smile at that proclamation, but then tells them, "But it's probably not a good idea for me to actually go out there. You know, physically."

Stella joins Wen at the stall door and assures Olivia that they're ready. She knows Stella's right. They've practiced so much, they could perform these songs in their sleep, but she still can't move. "I know. And I'm scared."

"We're all scared," Wen tells her, backing away from the door.

And then Wen's at the door again, passing her a can of Mel's Lemonade.

"Look, we believe in you, okay?" he says. "I believe in you."

The lemonade is a reminder of why they're doing this, of why she agreed to do this. And so she opens it and takes a long drink, letting the lemonade be her liquid courage.

"I'm ready," Olivia announces as she exits the stall.

Standing on stage, Olivia fights off her nerves. She knows she just has to start. If she can start the song, she'll be fine. And so, she nods to Wen, who starts playing. The gym is eerily silent as she sings the opening. People are listening. And when iDeterminate picks up, she's not thinking anymore; she's lost in the music.

Olivia's not surprised when they're called into Brenigan's office the next morning, but it doesn't mean she likes it. It's exactly how she expected it to be, right down to Stella doing her best to be defiant while still sorta respectful. Olivia finds it comforting that some things will never change.

After disbanding, reading their review in the paper is quite the ego booster, though not as much as seeing all the signs and posters supporting them. She knew people liked them and enjoyed their music, but it seems like their message really struck a nerve. It's an amazing feeling.

Olivia supposes she shouldn't be surprised when Stella suggests they try again. She also probably shouldn't be surprised that Wen has joined the crusade. Still, she has to admit part of her was glad she wouldn't have to ever get up on stage again. It was incredibly nerve wracking, but she's still willing to consider it when Stella begins pushing.

However, when Mo runs out, it seems like a lost cause, until she sees the banner. It's honestly one of the most amazing things she's ever seen. She never expected their little performance to matter so much to so many people.

Maybe they really do matter.

They pack Dante's every night they play and having Mo sing lead helps relieve some of Olivia's stage fright. Besides, Mo is an incredibly performer. She kills _She's So Gone _and when the song's over, there isn't one person in the room that doesn't love them, or more specifically, Mo.

And then one morning, Gram tells her that Nancy died in the middle of the night. Olivia's heart just breaks at that news and she asks to stay home for the day. Her gram agrees and lets her be.

Olivia spends the day outside, crying. She wishes she remembered half as much about her mom as she does about Nancy. It really feels like she's lost any connection to her mom she had left.

She's almost relieved when she sees Wen in front of her and the others following behind. Olivia's so glad that she was right; she can count on the others when she needs them. It's why as everyone's sharing, she blurts out that her dad is in jail. She has to tell someone and she knows the others won't judge her for it. It's almost a relief to let it out.

It takes some time to get used to not having Nancy around, though hearing their song on the radio helps a lot.

But then Ray gets them fired from Dante's, Mo gets ridiculously sick, Charlie breaks three of his fingers and Wen shows up with a black eye and blurry vision. Olivia realizes this puts them at a huge disadvantage, but she still wants to try. After all, Lemonade Mouth is more than just a band.

Except she loses her voice from yelling at Wen and her hopes begin to fall as well.

Still, when Stella calls and asks for help in front of the school, she puts on her coat and grabs an umbrella before heading down. She can only imagine what kind of crazy reason Stella had to call them down.

And it's definitely a crazy reason. While Olivia is definitely going to miss the lemonade machine, she doesn't think it's quite the end of the world like Stella does. But when the moving guys pick Stella up, Olivia just reacts. She tosses her umbrella aside and jumps onto the guy. They all do. If it's important to Stella, then it's important to all of them. That's how things are with them.

Jail is exactly how it looks on TV, which doesn't make it any less depressing. It doesn't help that everyone else, except Stella, is so despondent about, well everything. They're all giving up, causing Stella to jump up and remind them that it's not just about Lemonade Mouth or Rising Star, it's about what the band represents, about why they even started playing together. She does her best to support Stella, but it's just not enough.

Until Charlie begins to tap out a beat that Mo joins in. Stella throws in her beat and Wen begins playing his zipper. It brings a smile to Olivia's face as she begins tapping out her own beat. Even though they're in a holding cell, Olivia feels like it's one of their best moments; reminding them how it all started, because they enjoy creating music together. Everything else that happened is just a bonus.

Of course trying to sing with laryngitis isn't a good or successful idea. Stella's enthusiasm and drive can only do so much and so they all shuffle off stage.

Only to be stopped by Alex starting to sing _Determinate_. And then others join her, but it's when Scott comes out, playing his guitar that Olivia _knows_ they've become something amazing.

They might not have won, but things do seem to get better. Mo's dad eases up on her a little bit, Charlie's parents stop comparing him to his older brother, and Wen even starts to warm up to his step mom.

The kitten he brings her is adorable and she falls in love with it, almost immediately. It's incredibly sweet. He then tells her, they're all invited to his dad and Sydney's wedding. He says his dad doesn't mind now that he's actually giving Sydney a chance.

Olivia wonders if she should be more surprised that Stella managed to actually meet Mel of Mel's Lemonade or that she got him to donate enough money for a music hall. This in turn makes Brenigan one of their biggest supporters, which is a weird thing to get used to.

Sitting in the audience between Mo and Stella, Olivia smiles watching her classmates enjoying the space. Then Stella lets her head fall onto Olivia's shoulder and she can't help but entwine their fingers; it just feels right.

After that, they end up at Stella's, their usual place to practice. It's mostly just them goofing around and trying things, but Olivia couldn't wipe the smile off her face if she tried.

Eventually Stella's mom appears reminding them that it's getting late and that they all have school in the morning, so they clean up and start to head out.

Except something's been bothering Stella ever since they arrived and Olivia can't leave without making sure she's okay. So as Wen waits to walk her home, she quickly grabs Stella and asks if she's okay.

Stella gives the expected answer and Olivia nods, before asking again.

"Stella, come one. We're friends, right?"

"Course we are," Stella nods in reply. She then takes a deep breath. "It's just that, I, uh, realized something this afternoon."

"Really? What?"

"It's no big deal," Stella shrugs.

"It is too," Olivia insists. "Especially if it's bothering you. You can tell me."

Stella then tries to avoid her gaze and so Olivia grabs her chin and holds her in place, trying to stare her into sharing.

Olivia's pleasantly surprised when Stella leans in and kisses her. It's sweet and gentle and Olivia feels herself sigh.

When Stella pulls back, looking worried, Olivia can only say, "Wen's waiting."

"Right. Of course."

Stella looks disappointed, though Olivia doesn't know how when she's wearing the biggest grin she's had in a long time, so she says, "We'll talk tomorrow?"

Stella's eyes light up. "Yeah?"

Olivia nods and kisses Stella. "I'll call you."

And then Stella's cocky grin is back. "You better."

Olivia winks as she walks back to Wen and they leave.

"Can you believe all this?" Wen asks as they walk.

Olivia shakes her head. "It's incredible. I think I'm going to write my dad and tell him."

"Yeah?" Wen asks. "That's good. Right?"

"It is," Olivia replies. "I think it will be. It should be. Right?"

"It will be," Wen agrees.

"I think so too."

Wen grabs her hand and swings it slightly as they keep walking. Remembering the feel of Stella's lips against hers, Olivia feels slightly guilty. She knows Wen likes her and she likes him too, but it kind of feels like they've stalled a bit, as if he doesn't know what's next. What Olivia's always admired about Stella is that she goes after the things she wants. She knows it's not fair to compare the two, but Wen's had multiple opportunities and nothing has happened. Stella, on the other hand, figured out that she likes Olivia just this afternoon and kissed her only a few hours later.

When they reach her door, Olivia gives Wen a hug and thanks him for walking her home before heading inside.

Lying in bed, Olivia's mind wanders to Stella. She still can't believe that Stella kissed her; or rather that Stella actually likes her back. Despite the connection they seem to have anytime they play together, Olivia was never really sure if that carried over into other aspects; apparently it does.

Having been drawn to Stella from the beginning, Olivia enjoys the giddiness she feels from their kiss earlier. She falls asleep, smiling, eager to see Stella tomorrow.

Which is why she shows up at her house, unannounced before school the next day. She apologizes to Stella's mom, but she just smiles and calls up to Stella. A few moments later, Stella comes barreling down the stairs, grabs her hand, waves at her family and then drags Olivia up to her room.

As Stella is closing her door, Olivia finds herself drawn to Stella and so as soon as Stella turns around, Olivia kisses her.

"Hi," Stella smiles when they pull apart.

"Morning," Olivia greets, feeling her cheeks redden. "Sorry. I've just been thinking about doing that ever since I left last night."

"You never have to apologize for kissing me," Stella tells her. "I'll never be upset by that."

Olivia can only laugh and kiss her again.

This time they're interrupted by a knock on Stella's door. It's her mom offering a ride to school. Olivia's so worried about being caught making out, she backs up a little too quickly and almost falls. Stella's arm shoots out and catches her, though.

"I guess we'll have to talk later, then?" Olivia asks once Stella's mom has gone back downstairs.

Stella nods. "We've got the important part figured out at least."

Olivia probably shouldn't be so surprised by that response, but she is and so she elbows Stella.

"I meant that you like me back," Stella tells Olivia. "Though the kissing is definitely pretty awesome."

"I'm glad," Olivia says, though she's not sure how everyone's going to react and she'd like to at least have a real talk with Stella before they tell the others, especially Wen. "You're going to have to hold back at school. Okay?"

"I know," Stella agrees, to Olivia's relief. "But we're definitely talking after practice."

"We are," Olivia replies.

Stella grabs her bag and they head downstairs. Olivia watches amused as Stella tries to refuse the fruit her parents insist she take with for breakfast. She probably shouldn't find it adorable.

They hold hands the entire car ride to Mesa, only letting go when they have to get out of the car. Stella's mom waves and then drives off, leaving the two of them to walk in together.

Glancing over at Stella, Olivia sees she's wearing that cocky, triumphant grin that Olivia adores. It takes every ounce of will power she has, not to lean over and kiss her. Instead, she smiles at her, bumping shoulders, before they part company since they're lockers aren't located by each other.

She's just about to close her locker when she receives a text.

_Missing you already. See you at lunch. XXX Stella_

It's sweet and unexpected and brings a smile to Olivia's face. Who knew Stella Yamada could be so charming? Olivia heads to class knowing it's going to be a very good day.


End file.
